


Angel Mice and Demon Birds

by RandyWrites



Series: Canon Noncompliance [2]
Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU, DCU (Comics), Teen Titans - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, One Shot Collection, Titans Dark
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-08
Updated: 2019-03-27
Packaged: 2019-06-23 16:41:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 9,274
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15610533
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RandyWrites/pseuds/RandyWrites
Summary: One shots from tumblr, mostly centered around a specific team and place in time.The Ravager brought them all together as a strike team, with one goal in mind: To take down some of the worst threats the Titans have ever faced. Their own fathers.But missions have a funny way of bringing the most unexpected people together...





	1. "What do you have behind your back?"

Sensing a teammate entering the library, Raven looked up from the rune Rose asked her to look over, and offered her a greeting. In the doorway stood Cassandra, who knocked gently against the open door’s frame with a small smile on her face. Raven dropped the pencil she had been using at the sight of her.

“Cassandra! A-Anything I can help you with?” Raven asked, scrambling to clear a seat for her. Books enveloped in her aura were quickly given new homes on the shelves once more.

“C-A-S-S,” she signed quickly with her right hand, reminding Raven of her nickname, “I’m here for you.” She gestured with her head as well as her hand to emphasize the ‘you’. A minor movement to some, but Raven found the extra crease of her eyebrows together to help with the emphasis positively adorable.

Straightening her back, she felt her heart race for a moment. This damn crush she had formed for the Bat was getting to her much more than she’d care to admit, but it couldn’t be helped. Cass was simply too cute for words, and to top it off, her skill and finesse in the field was unparalleled even to Scandal’s measured brutality or Rose’s fierceness. They couldn’t hold a candle to the Black Bat of Gotham, and it was something Raven admired her for all the more.

She shook her head for a moment, trying to clear these thoughts. ‘Get a hold of yourself, don’t be too gay to function.’

“What do you have behind your back?” she settled on asking, just a tad suspicious, given Cass seemed to prefer using both hands to sign when it could be helped.

Cass’ smile widened playfully as she answered “Nothing” and began to shimmy into the room, careful to keep her secret object hidden from view. The empath opted for a quirked eyebrow in response to the Bat’s antics, turning away briefly to find a pencil to replace the one she’d lost.

“Well if you’re going to play things like that-” Suddenly a plate of fresh-baked cookies filled her line of vision. She thought it was suspicious how the scent had gotten stronger so long after she had heard the the oven timer go off from down the hall.

She looked wordlessly at Cass for an explanation as she set the plate on the table.

“Study break. You work too hard.”

Shaking her head, but taking a cookie, Raven found herself smiling. “Alright, you got me. What kind of cookies are these anyway?”

…

From the hall, Renee 'casually’ walked by the library to see how her little side-project was going.

Cass had successfully delivered the cookies they had spent the afternoon baking. And from the low tones of their conversation, it looked like she had been successful in extending her welcome in the base’s library as well.

The Question smirked to herself. She was really going to enjoy playing matchmaker between these two.


	2. Compromised

She was hurt. Badly.

It was obvious from the way her body had hit the concrete. Raven could barely think, wanting to scream to the heavens. Out of all their team members, why did it have to be _Cassandra_?

’ _Renee never has to be in field_ ’, she thought bitterly, ‘ _she’s always running ops and trying to pick together clues from afar. She rarely ever gets out of the base when it comes right down to it_.’

Scandal and Rose each had a healing factor, written right into their metagenes. It made them reckless at times, but never enough to put themselves in absolute danger.

Cass, though? Cass was so painfully, horribly human. And she was so considerate of life around her.

Of course she shoved that woman out of the way as the explosive fell. Of course she’d been caught by the shrapnel spray.

Raven remembered screaming, yelling Cass’ name as she ran to her, too upset to even try flying.

She steeled her nerves as soon as she saw the worst of Cass’ wounds. Tearing off her hood and scarf, she staunched the bleeding where she could, her hands glowing bright blue as she tried to absorb as much of the pain as she could stand. There wasn’t an exact science trying to combine her medical knowledge with her magical prowess, but now wasn’t the time to worry about how much to use of one over the other. She needed to stop the major bleeding.

“Raven, get her out of here!” Rose ordered as gunfire rained over them. Raven merely crouched lower, protectively over Cass’ body as she tried to work faster.

“She’s bleeding bad, Ravager! Cover us!”

She felt a weak grip on her arm, and looked up to see Cass smiling at her. Despite _everything_ , she was _smiling_? _How was she even awake_?

“Go,” she whispered. Raven ignored the tear forming in her eye then. Now was definitely not the time to let any of her emotions at the wheel.

“Just shut up already you crazy bat,” she scolded.

Cass rarely spoke. She knew enough to make communication possible for those who didn’t know sign language, but her natural grace while using so many wonderful gestures in combination with her body language was where she’d truly found her voice.

Raven knew she must’ve really thought it was important. That she knew her injuries should be too much, even for her.

She could see most of Cass’ minor cuts and scrapes healing right before her eyes, though. As most of the blood had already turned her once blue scarf black, Raven knew she needed proper help.

“It’s gonna be okay, I can get us out now,” she turned to where Scandal had fallen after a bad blow from an opponent. “I’m taking Bat back to the base. I’ll try to be back for you two when she’s stable.”

She gently lifted her friend off the ground, a little shaky as shock began to settle in.

’ _No, bite it back. Cass needs you_.’

She opened a portal and ran, praying to whatever deity that felt merciful enough to listen, that she wouldn’t be too late.

…

Cassandra awoke in the base’s med bay. A bit disoriented at first, but soon recognizing her favorite doctor/teammate dozing lightly on a cot next to her bedside.

She winced slightly when she tried to adjust herself to her side. Yep, sleeping on anything other than her back was out of the question. She hadn’t had an injury this bad in a very, very long time.

Glancing once more to Raven as she turned over in her sleep, Cass smiled fondly. She had told her to go, and yet the stubborn bird probably hadn’t left her side since she got them here. It wasn’t like it was the first time either.

Cass almost wanted to sigh. She’d probably get another earful from Rose and Renee about it, but for now…

Raven turned fitfully once more, mumbling something in her sleep. Ever restless.

“Thank you,” Cass signed.

She’d tell her again when she woke up. But for now, she’d let her rescuer sleep.


	3. Morning Kisses

The empath pressed a kiss lightly against her lover’s forehead.

“I’ll be back around two,” she whispered, “Don’t forget to feed Odie his lunch.”

Cass perked up at the name, eyes barely opened as she signed “ _Who_?” slowly and lazily.

Raven rolled her eyes with a smile, before leaning down once more to plant another kiss on her cheek. She really couldn’t help it. Cass’ short hair in wild disarray on top of her head, and the way her face always scrunched up as she over-exaggerated her expressions when she was bone-tired. She was cute all the time, but _especially_ in the mornings.

“Barbara’s cat?” Another kiss on her other cheek as the empath mussed her hair a bit. “The one she was cat-sitting for Selina, before he got _attached_?” A small kiss on top of her nose. “She’s with the _Birds_ in Europe for the next week, remember?”

The Bat nodded slowly in understanding before tilting her head back to steal a kiss from her girlfriend’s lips. She smiled a bit as the empath froze in surprise, and then eased once more into it.

She should’ve been a bit more concerned about catching up on sleep, considering the night she’d had on patrol. But just as much as Raven couldn’t resist mussing up her bed-head, she couldn’t help trying to keep her by her bedside.

After all, her girlfriend was the worst kind of cuddler: the secret kind. The one you’d least expect to want to cuddle, and yet…

Cass smiled a bit more as Raven took her hand from her cheek and placed it down on Cass’ side, deepening the kiss as she did so.

 _Bingo_.

Gently, and quickly, as possible, she hit her girlfriend’s elbows in, shifted their hips together, and had the Titan collapsing onto the bed, flipping their positions.

“Cass!” Raven yelped in surprise.

Surprise soon dissolved into laughter though, as Cass leaned in once more, brown eyes connecting with violet. She turned her head when Cass tried to steal another kiss from her.

“Nuh-uh, Miss Wayne, bed rest and cat-sitting for you today. We can pick this up after I’m done with the errands.”

“I can ask Alfred,” Cass signed, a pout forming on her face as she shifted her weight to fully rest on Raven’s hips. She was not letting her get away that easily. “He wouldn’t mind. We can give him a big ‘ _thanks_ ’ tomorrow.”

“And let him think I’m incapable of taking care of you?” Raven let out a gentle snort as she tried to shift Cass off of her. For such a tiny woman, she sure knew how to use her weight to her advantage.

“Please?” Cass signed before leaning down once more for another kiss. This one was accepted for but a few seconds until Raven had them flipped once more.

“Feed Odie,” Raven said sternly. “We’ll pick this up tonight.” A final forehead peck.

“Promise?” Cass signed, her eyes tired and creasing together as she pleaded.

“Promise.” Raven’s aura enveloped the curtains and pulled them so the morning sun’s rays would no longer disturb the Bat’s rest. She set the alarm for just before noon, knowing Cass was likely to sleep through it regardless, and blew one last kiss in her direction, smiling as she heard the younger woman’s soft snores filling up the room.

She’d be lying if she said she wasn’t tempted to go back in and join her in her slumber.


	4. Chapter 4

After gently placing the scrolls back into the cabinet, Raven’s hands flitted nervously over her remaining supplies left on the desk.

 _Her_ desk, really, seeing as she was the only one on the team at this point who was making regular use of the library.

No, that wasn’t entirely true. Montoya was just as prone to bring her cork boards and drawing boards and set up shop every couple of days when they’d lose track of Vandal and his cohorts. But it’d been some time since she’d needed the space or extra set of fresh eyes.

Rose had noticed everyone becoming restless in this lull. And like a great leader, she’d decided on the _best_ course of action to fill up the time left by it.

By hosting a mandatory movie night in her own quarters.

It didn’t matter that they were all “ _grown-ass women who don’t need some tween-bonding experience_ ” as Scandal had put it. It didn’t matter that “ _there are better things to do to bond together than sing along to some trashy, bright musical_ ” as Renee had said. And it certainly didn’t matter that “ _we need to be preparing for the worst possible scenario after such a long silence_ ” as Raven herself had advised over and over.

“I’m burnt out. We all need a break. The movie starts at 8. Bring your own snacks ‘n pillows,” was her final word on the subject at breakfast that morning.

Raven hadn’t even bothered entertaining the thought of it until Cassandra had stepped into the library, a quarter till showtime.

 _She_ was the reason Raven got so damn nervous all the time now.

The empath was big enough to admit, it had been a mostly aesthetic attraction at first. The younger woman had the mellowest brown eyes she’d seen in years, a certain pride she always carried herself with, and, _Azar help her_ , the warmest smile the seemed to brighten up any room she was in.

What started as a simple crush only weighed more and more each day as she’d gotten to know the elusive Bat. And at some point, just before Raven had fully accepted falling head-over-heels, Cass had admitted to having just as much affection for her as well.

They’d skirted around the issue for two days now, and Raven hadn’t been entirely sure why.

Was it too soon? Was Cass actually much more shy than Raven had been led to think? She’d been so bold that night after they’d investigated a lead together…

And here the Bat was, finally standing at her doorway once more, sheepishly holding stacks of bedding and pillows in her arms.

She glanced for the briefest of seconds for a spot to place them, before settling on throwing them onto an unoccupied chair. And with both hands finally free, she started signing away. A bit touch and go, however, as she seemed to have trouble forming her words.

“I have lots of these.” A gesture to the blankets and a blush as she continued, “I’ll share the blankets with you. If you need- want them. If you want them.” She straightened her back, and even from the distance, Raven could tell she was steeling her nerves. “If you want me. Want to be with me. Sit with me tonight.” Her face was bright pink now, the blush creeping all over and betraying her.

The empath stared for only a few moments in silence before laughing. A small snicker at first, then full guffaws that racked her whole body. She’d grabbed her sides as they began to stitch.

“I’m sorry, I really-” She snorted and then snickered at the sound, trying to reign in the feeling- “I didn’t even _know_ you could stutter in ASL,” she laughed.

“It’s _not_ a stutter,” Cass pouted. Or rather, tried to pout. Raven’s laughter was becoming rather infectious and she slowly started chuckling, low and light.

“And here I was thinking that you weren’t really crushing on me,” Raven teased, gathering up the blankets Cass had offered.

She paused for the briefest of moments before making a split-decision as she passed by the Bat on her way out the door. A light peck on the cheek before she practically _skipped_ out of the library.

“We better _hurry_ if we’re gonna make it before Rose starts the damn thing!” she called back as Cass touched her cheek in a moment of shock. Raven felt her own face redden at the gesture.

Like a damn schoolyard crush. But _by Azar_ if she wasn’t still enjoying every damn moment of it…


	5. Chapter 5

Whipping her head to the sound of rapid beeping, Raven wanted to slap herself mentally for not taking better stock of the fight once it’d broken out. She’d made the mistake of being brought into the fray again instead of sticking to playing support.

And here they were now. Scandal pinning a goon against the wall before giving them a proper concussion. Rose scrambling over a console, pressing all kinds of codes and sequences into the machine. And Cass knocking out the final henchman trying to pull one over on their leader.

“Who pressed the self-destruct button?” Renee chimed over the comms in near unison with Raven.

Scandal gave an undignified scoff when the empath’s eyes first glanced to her, before pointing a thumb at the other two members of their team.

Their leader ignored all of them completely, single-mindedly focused on shutting the sequence down, trying to scan the immediate future for answers as she did so. Which only left Cassandra, who sheepishly raised her hand with a blush barely peaking over her masked face.

A look that clearly said, ’ _guilty as charged_ ’. And one so comical that Raven couldn’t stop herself from letting a short giggle loose.

“I know, I know, I know,” she signed over and over, as if trying to find the proper way to say ’ _I made a mistake and I’m sorry’_ , before Raven took one of her hands.

The empath brought her other hand to the Bat’s cheek, tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear before leaning down to kiss the younger woman on the forehead.

“We all make mistakes, love. It’s okay.”

Scandal rolled her eyes at the pair, but her own smirk wasn’t completely hidden under the mask as it quirked in time with her words. “They’re being a bunch of useless bisexuals again, Montoya.”

Cass and Raven both blushed a bit brighter as they heard Renee’s laugh over the comms and Rose pulled the earpiece out as it became more of a distraction.

“Oscar, Foxtrot, Foxtrot,” Rose commanded, her voice a bit strained and panicked as the beeping sped up and was cut short by a final button press. She slumped into the chair in front of the console, sighing with relief and rubbing her temple as she did so.

“Raven?” Rose called, not bothering to open her eye at the two as they embraced.

“Yes?”

“Please find a way that we can work with your girlfriend’s dyslexia. Because Cass is _officially_ banned from messing with any enemy electronics unless she’s straight-up destroying it.”

Raven could tell by the crease in her brow that Cass was pouting, and was clearly very tempted to show Rose a very universal rude gesture with her hand, before she stopped her by holding it once more.

“Don’t mind her, love,” she whispered into her ear, gently taking away that anger and frustration with her empathy. She held even tighter to the younger woman’s hand then, and with other free one, opened a portal back to their base.

They let Rose and Scandal leave ahead of them before walking through it in tandem, their hands not once leaving the other.


	6. Chapter 6

“You’re cheating,” Cass pouted before climbing back into her tube. She scrambled a bit as the choppy waves threw off her sense of balance. Somehow she eventually managed to use it to her advantage as she tried to right herself.

For all of her athleticism, and for the added bonus of having arm floaties attached securely to her body , she still struggled to keep up with Raven during their impromptu floating competition. She was positive Raven was using from her flying abilities to keep herself righted in the water. Which would definitely not be allowed during the Wayne Family Vacation Beach Olympics. (The same one that Dick and Steph definitely just made up that very same day.)

“It’s all about controlling your breathing,” Raven argued, gently pulling herself through the water to where her girlfriend began to drift out to sea. She tugged on the handle of the tube, keeping them both from drifting too far from the shore.

“That must be why it’s so difficult then,” Cass signed, pushing both of her eyebrows up briefly in a suggestive wiggle, “Because you take my breath away.”

The empath almost couldn’t tell if the redness on her face was from a blush, or if the sun had finally gotten to her.

Gaping like a fish, she began choking on sea water as an unusually large wave crashed on top of them. Cass held tight to her arm in concern, but Raven was quick to recover, spitting out the salty water and pushing her hair out of her face.

“Dick is officially banned from our double dates,” Raven glared, “His cheesiness is rubbing off on you.” She made a quick motion with her head, a non-verbal cue that she’d had enough of the water.

Cass only smirked as she tried to help paddle back to the shore.

“And yet, it works like a charm.”

“Ha-ha-ha, magic pun,” Raven said, falling back on her old monotone as a defense. Even as they swam to shore, Cass could tell she didn’t mean it. She absolutely adored when the Bat kept up the romance. Cheesiness and all.


	7. Chapter 7

“Can you stand up?” the empath asked. Her face was etched with concern as the Bat reached for the nightstand to steady herself, and slowly tried to pull herself onto her feet.

Raven began to reach for her, offering her own hands to help, but Cass gently pushed them away. She could see Raven’s body screaming at her in frustration, wanting to berate her for pushing the older woman away. But from her previous experience with such injuries, Cass knew it was something she needed to face alone at the moment.

Unsteady knees wobbled as she leaned most of her weight into the nightstand, trying to gauge how much they could take before completely giving out on her. As she soon began to realize they wouldn’t hold, she rocked back onto the bed, and let the rest of her body sink back into the mattress in frustration. She covered her eyes as tears began to form, wiping them away stubbornly.

“I really, really messed them up this time, Raven,” she signed, not caring if the empath was able to make out her words at the odd angle. “I’ve had bad landings before, but-”

“‘But’ nothing. The team will find us soon and then we can-”

The Bat began to ignore her as she worked to pull her legs back onto the bed, muling over their options.

It had been 48 hours since the team had been separated. They’d been the only ones to make it so far to the rendezvous point, and time was fast approaching for them to leave for the next checkpoint.

The only thing they hadn’t accounted for was Cass’ damn-near suicidal recklessness and a chance encounter with an ancient relic that seemed to be slowing down Raven’s healing abilities. Never a good combination, but nothing the team hadn’t seen before in some shape or form.

But now it was threatening their very lives, and likely the lives of their teammates. Granted if they had survived the ambush as well. Though, it was looking less and less likely as the hours passed. And Cass could tell her injuries weren’t going to get any better without outside help.

“Just let me help you, love,” Raven pleaded, taking the Bat’s hand in her own and gently kissing her knuckles, “We either stay together or leave together, but we need to make a decision soon.”

Cass turned to face her once more, taking a calming breath and steeling her nerves. Resolve weighing on her heart, she knew that the empath would not enjoy the choice she was about to make.


	8. Chapter 8

The sweat was nearly dripping from her brow, not even the shade of her baseball cap giving refuge from the unforgiving rays of the sun. Cassandra lifted the cap for a moment to clear it away, but no relief was found.

But the sun was only partially to blame for her state at this moment.

Her heart was racing, screams filling her ears and her mind with terror. The anticipation for what was to come next.

Then Raven took her arm, leading her forward into more substantial shade.

“Listen to me, it’s gonna be okay,” she said, letting her comfort and ease drift over Cass like a soft blanket.

The Bat turned to her girlfriend, her eyebrows creased together, indignant.

“You’re leading me into a deathtrap,” she signed furiously.

Just as Raven opened her mouth to counter, more unexpected screams filled the air, making Cass jump. She let loose a peal of laughter at Cass’ suppressed fear.

“You fight psychopaths and supers on the nightly, but the _Black Bat of Gotham_ is afraid of a little drop tower ride?”

Cass scowled as her girlfriend let out another snort and giggle. “I can fight those,” she protested, “I can’t punch a ride.”

“Hmm, no, I suppose you can’t.” The empath intertwined their fingers together, making her heart skip a beat.

Or maybe that was still the adrenaline coursing in her veins?

No, no, the flutters in her heart now were definitely from Raven. Especially as she inched closer and leaned down to whisper in her ear.

“These rides run thousands of times everyday, and if anything happens, I’ll get us all out. I promise.” She kissed the side of her head gently. “I would never put you in danger, my love.”

Yep, heart failure was imminent, and it certainly wasn’t going to be from the ride now. Cass felt her tan cheeks grow redder, and bit her lip as she squeeze the empath’s hand for another second.

“Still. If I die,” Cass smirked, before turning her face into an _extra serious_ glare, “I’m haunting your ass for the next decade.”

Raven only chuckled at the younger woman’s antics. “That’d be perfectly fine with me.” She took her hand once more as they shuffled forward in line.


	9. Chapter 9

Pale fingers ghosted over the scar tissue on the Bat’s back, electric and sparking with magic as it reacted to fresh cuts and old wounds. Cass found herself barely stifling a moan as a bad knot in her shoulder was undone by her lover’s ministrations, letting herself melt into pillow she rested over.

“You could ask for a night off, you know,” the empath chided gently, fingertips sinking and gliding over Cass’ shoulder blades. “Rest is important, too.”

“No,” the Bat signed, not bothering to contain her gasp as she felt another shock of relief along her spine. She might be taking that decision back in a few moments, but for now she’d be stubborn.

She was a daughter of the _Batman_ , after all. Hell bent to follow his crusade to the very, bitter end.

And if Raven was being honest with herself, she couldn’t be absolutely sure she was as comfortable with that thought as her love seemed to be.

She set it aside as her fingers continued ghosting over Cass’ skin, pausing every few inches to massage knots or focus on healing. She paused when she got midway down her back, noticing a scar deeper and more concerning than the usual knife wounds. Her finger traced the surgical line, eyebrows creasing in concern when Cass shivered at the touch and turned her head over.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, too tired to bother flipping back over to sign.

“Do you still have both of your kidneys?” Like ripping off a bandaid, Raven got right to the point of what was concerning her.

The Bat opened her mouth to speak, but shut it just as quickly in confusion. Raven could practically see the gears in her head turning, mental gymnastics competing for the Olympics as they strained to remember something long forgotten.

A few seconds of thinking soon turned to a minute. And then another.

And just as Raven was about to repeat her question, Cass finally shrugged, nonplussed.

“I don’t remember. Does it matter?”

The former Titan was flabbergasted, speechless.

“Cassandra,” she caught her attention, using her name with such concern in her voice. Cass began sitting up, knowing they were in for a long conversation.

At least until she said, with a small playful smirk on her face, “You only get the two…”

The Bat rolled her eyes and rested once more on top of the pillow. Raven could save the _actual_ lecture for _after_ their little healing session. She could worry about kidneys (or lack thereof) later.


	10. Chapter 10

Contrary to popular belief, and what modern media had convinced her teammates of, Raven knew that magic was not an end-all cure to their problems. It always came at a cost, whether that be time or energy, physical objects or even abstract concepts of self forfeited. It was far from a hard science of exchange. In many cases, in fact, it was almost astronomical what one must give up in order to achieve certain feats.

But such was the way, when one was asking the impossible to become so.

Raven knew such things, and yet, she’d given up more than enough after her foot had been cleanly broken in the team’s most recent battle with Savage. She’d been less focused on setting the foot back, letting her natural healing kick in as she rushed to aid her teammates. She’d given up some of that ability to keep Montoya from the brink.

And now here she was, on Rose’s orders of bedrest, mentally kicking herself for not setting her foot properly in the first place. She winced as she felt another throb of pain, waiting for the ibuprofen to kick in again, and remembering how hard it had been to ask Cassandra to rebreak her foot in order to reset the cast.

Despite her promises that it’d only take a day or two to heal, Cass had hesitated. Which Raven had thought sweet at the time, but unhelpful and impractical as they wasted precious seconds arguing over it.

Rose, luckily, had no such qualms. But she had felt guilty enough after ‘helping’ to give Raven more than ample recovery time. Orders of at least four days of rest.

She had also assigned the Bat to watching over both of their teammates as they recovered from this particularly disastrous mission.

Raven directed her attention now to her ‘nurse’ for the next four days, watching as she brought in more pillows to prop the empath’s ankle up. Higher and higher it went, until it reached nearly comical levels, and Raven found herself stifling her laughter when Cass finally turned to her.

“Is that right? How are you feeling?” she signed for the older woman.

Raven could only shake her head incredulously. She may have been merely a pediatrician before signing on for this crusade of Rose’s, but she was still appalled at to learn how little each of these women seemed to remember about how to care for other’s injuries.

“Not… quite,” she chuckled, “I think the painkillers are finally kicking in, but we can definitely stand to take out a pillow or three for my ankle.” She watched with a bit of humor as Cass’ face went flush. “I’m sure Renee will appreciate all of the extra pillows when she wakes up, though.”

The mage reached out a hand then, calling over the detective’s charts with a quick shot of her telekinesis, and giving them a glance. Renee was stable, making a recovery, but not quite-

All thoughts of the detective’s progress were quickly squashed as Cassandra touched her shoulder for a moment, sending a gentle tug of worry through the empath’s stomach. A small pull of longing and fear was front and center in her chest, and Raven immediately set the chart down to pull her love closer.

She reached for shoulder first, then cupped the side of the Bat’s face as she read the worry in her eyes. And with that eye contact established, Raven wanted to expend the last of her energies into calming her girlfriend.

But she was spent.

And all she could do was stare wordlessly into Cassandra’s eyes, pulling her down so that their foreheads met, hoping to convey how much she wished she could take her worry away.

The Bat smiled, as if she’d understood exactly that, and she leaned down the rest of the way to give her a soft kiss. The barest touch of lips before Cass whispered, “Only a few days, right?”

A need for reassurance. Raven smiled once more before nodding in affirmation.

She watched with a bit of surprise as Cass began to climb into the bed with her, then, snuggling against the empath and carefully avoiding tangling their legs as she did so.

Not that she would’ve minded all that much. But it was comforting feeling the familiar weight of the small bat leaning against her body. Perhaps she’d be able to fall asleep and get some of that much needed rest after all, with her favorite bat in her arms once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> just in case the tumblr purge is a real thing & my blogs get deleted. it's as good an excuse as any to update these collections from there...


	11. Chapter 11

She’d finally caught the mage at her usual haunt.

The library.

Always that damn library.

Raven clutched a scroll and some books in hand, mumbling a greeting to the Bat, and sheepishly avoiding eye contact. Cass couldn’t for the life of her understand why.

Sure, she’d kissed the mage in a spur of the moment decision after a short-lived victory over the Titans’ foes.

It’d been quick, passionate, and something she couldn’t stop thinking about for the better part of that day.

They’d been flirting for nearly a month by this point. The rest of the team had been trying to get them together for even twice as long before that. So it really shouldn’t have been too much of shock that Cass had finally made a move.

One of them had to, dammit!

But when Raven had broken it off, phasing away before Cass could even begin to tell her how she felt, she’d been a little disheartened. And the only way to find out why she’d run, was to confront the mage herself.

And here she was, hiding out in her favorite corner of the base, clearly afraid of something, but unwilling to communicate exactly what that was with the Bat.

Cass was getting tired of it, to say the least.

“I’m not great with words,” she started, after huffing in frustration. She was signing slowly. Precisely. Clearly. “But I like you. A lot. And I keep finding more things I like about you, and just-”

She took tentative steps forward as she rambled a bit, seeing Raven tense up minutely, but feeling emboldened to continue as she relaxed almost just as quickly.

The atmosphere was practically charged with the tension that the empath held in her shoulders. Rigid and restrained, she clutched her scrolls even tighter as Cass approached her, getting intimately close.

“Just let me know if you don’t feel the same and I’ll stop-”

She dropped her scrolls and, in a flourish, reached down to still the Bat’s hands, kissing her almost timidly on the lips. Soft and gentle, but with a clear message.

“Yes,” Raven whispered, “Yes, I like you, too. I just didn’t- I couldn’t-”

Cass tried holding a finger to her lips, an attempt to be romantic. But her face went beet red as she accidentally over shot, and poked her finger at the empath’s nose.

The pale sorceress could only start laughing at the poke, snorting as Cass joined in. Faces were flush, giddy with relief at a mutual understanding finally reached.

They’d skirted around the issue for so long, and now with the feelings aired, they were feeling light once more.

“Where do we even… go from here?” Cass asked, shaking her head incredulously.

“It’s been a hot minute in hell since I’ve done this, too,” Raven admitted, “But I think the easiest might be…” She slowly intertwined their fingers together, leading Cass slowly from the library. “Join me for a drink? And maybe make some plans with me to keep the team from butting into our business?”

Cass’ heart fluttered at the mention of  _their_  business.

Theirs. As in the two of them. Together.

She’d let out a groan at the thought immediately following, of the team’s guaranteed teasing. A very likely possibility of endless streams of ‘I told you so’s and ‘About damn time’s.

“You’re right,” she wrinkled her nose a bit, “they’ll never let us hear the end of it when they find out.”

“ _If_ ,” Raven corrected, pointing a finger, and raising her eyebrows conspiratorially, “If we’re  _just_  the  _right_ amount of sneaky.”

The Bat smiled wide at the thought, nodding eagerly. “I like that.  _If_  is good.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> must've listened to coin's "i would" a million times while writing this...


	12. Chapter 12

Raven glanced back and forth from the suit her girlfriend wore to the matching tux she had picked out for herself.

She’d chosen it on a whim. Well, more so on a wish and a little bit of a prayer.

That this might be the one of the times that her girlfriend would choose something more feminine for the night, as she had for the past few galas they had attended together. Sure, it wasn’t a guarantee that Cass would don a dress, but what were the chances that they’d  _both_  opt for suits for this event?

It must have been astronomical, to say the least.

She let out a groan of frustration, running a hand over her face as realization fully dawned on her.

They simply  _couldn’t_  go out like this.

“Even down to the tie, I can’t believe us!” the empath said, shaking her head and undoing the blue bowtie around her neck. She stilled as the shorter woman reached to stop her, Cassandra’s face quickly becoming flushed.

“Can we… have matching clothes… for a little while?” she asked almost sheepishly, her hands hesitating as she struggled to find the right phrases to sign.

“Love, this is a  _black-tie_  event. And there’s going to be a  _LOT_  of media coverage,” Raven took a breath as she braced herself for what she was about to do.

She took her girlfriend by both to her shoulders, and made direct eye contact with Cass. She knew emotional projection would’ve been much easier, but she was working on speaking more clearly with her body language now. More overtly, more showy.

It was a bit clunky, and over the top, but Cassandra appreciate the gesture. Metahumans were notoriously difficult to read, but this empath was slowly learning, and all for her.

“We  _CAN’T_  be the butch couple.  _Kate and Renee_  already have the corner market on that. And I  _refuse_ to compete with your aunts’ sense of style over this.”

“What about  _your_  aunts,” Cass pouted. “Mrs. and Mrs. Arkham have been  _femme fatales_  for even longer than they’ve been a  _couple_.”

“Hey!” Raven didn’t hold back her glare in that moment. It was one thing to bring any of the Bats into their arguments. But Raven’s adopted family-figures were a whole ‘nother ball park.

“Leave Harley and Pam out of this! They’re not going to be crashing the gala-”

“ _Might_  not crash it, you mean,” Cass couldn’t help her smile as she corrected her. She began retying Raven’s bowtie once more, smiling at her handiwork as her girlfriend let out a sigh of exasperation, running a frustrated hand through her long black hair.

“You’re killing me, Ms. Cain-Wayne. I just want you to know that.” Her face started growing a pink tinge as the Bat looped her thumbs into her belt loops and pulled their bodies closer together.

“Better tell Batdad,” Cass whispered in her ear as she leaned up while pulled the older woman even closer to her, “No killing allowed in Gotham.”

Raven bit her lip to hold back a snicker. “When did you get so smooth and sweet-talking, love?” She draped her arms carefully over the shorter woman, forehead resting against forehead.

“Practice,” Cassandra offered breathlessly as she took in the empath’s irises. The crinkle of her nose paired with the smile on her face. It was obvious what she was thinking, and most of all what she was feeling. “Lots of practice,” she admitted before leaning up to steal a kiss.

 


	13. Chapter 13

The Bat understood and accepted many things about her girlfriend. The first was that she was a half-demon. And with that came many tendencies, most of which were none too pleasant.

The worst of it, however, had to be her natural inclination for keeping her environment a tad hotter than what would be, in Cass’ well-refined opinion, socially acceptable. Granted, the temperature wasn’t  _sweltering_ , per se…

But Cass found it positively impossible to fall asleep after long nights of patrols, with the thermostat at 74 degrees.

That was lounging temperature, not sleeping temperature.

So when she snuck in through the window that night, seeing that Raven was already soundly asleep. She thought nothing of turning it down a few notches and gathering up a blanket for the empath to use when she felt colder.

They’d discussed this rather briefly, only in passing. But the Bat knew that if she ever had a chance to get any rest that night, it would be by asking for forgiveness rather than for permission.

She grinned to herself as she heard the A/C kick to life, and promptly fell asleep in her spot in the bed, right beside her girlfriend.

…

Raven awoke shivering. It was well past the witching hour, but much too soon for her to begin prepping for her shift at the hospital. And something was amiss.

The first was the absolute freezing temperature of the room. It was the middle of July for pete’s sake! Why did it feel like a winter wonderland?

The next, she noticed, was the distinct heat she felt in the bed, and the calm emotions radiating off of it.

She groggily recognized Cass’ aura, and could see she had curled protectively around a pillow in the middle of her dream. It must have been very pleasant. Her face was relaxed, mouth slightly agape and soft snores escaping as she drifted.

The empath carefully rolled out of the bed, taking the blanket set at the foot and wrapping it around her like one of her old cloaks.

She fumbled through the dark, wrapping the cloth tightly around her body as she searched for the thermostat.

“65? She’s trying to kill me,” Raven hissed as she readjusted the temperature. She nodded to herself as she heard the fans die down and silence enveloped the room once more.

Things would slowly, but surely, heat up. An equilibrium at exactly 70 degrees.

It wasn’t nearly as hot as she’d like, but the blanket was fairly warm already. She’d survive the night, at least.

She crawled back into bed, hearing Cass whine briefly about the white-noise of the fan being off, before shutting her down with a kiss to the forehead.

She pulled the tiny Bat close to her body, wrapping her arms around the smaller woman and taking in her warmth.

“If you touch my thermostat again, you’ll be sleeping outside this winter,” she threatened mildly, “We’ll see how you like the cold then.”

Cass poked her side in retaliation, before mumbling, “Like you don’t love the excuse, to cuddle up for warmth.”

“Shut up and sleep,” the empath chided, burying her face in the Bat’s hair, eyes fluttering shut as she felt the room return to a reasonable temperature.


	14. Chapter 14

Cassandra gently brushed the hair from her girlfriend’s face, smiling as the empath’s snores stopped filling the room at the Bat’s touch. In an instant, Raven’s once serene face unceremoniously scrunched her features into agonizing awareness. She’d been brought out of a very pleasant dream, it would seem. And the Bat could do nothing more than to bring her girlfriend closer into her arms as she slowly began to rouse from her sleep.

“‘morning, blackbird,” she murmured into the empath’s hair as she continued, haltingly, “I would’ve… had breakfast ready, but you were… sleeping on my arm and… I didn’t want to wake you.”

The mage turned sleepily onto her side then, eyes staring blearily up at Cass as she let out a low chuckle at the site of her bed-head. She carefully set to work running her fingers through the mage’s long locks, helping to detangle a few loose strands.

“Breakfast?” Raven muttered as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes, “'was only ‘supposed to be a nap…” Her voice trailed off as Cass shook her head in rebuttal.

“You went to bed early, but you slept straight through dinner… and my patrol… and my morning kiss,” the Bat leaned over to peck her on the forehead before continuing in a soft whisper, “It’s two in the afternoon.”

Raven let out a groan of frustration, running a hand through her hair. “That’s the last time I accept a stupid mission without all of the details first. I’m so sorry, love.”

“You’re up now,” Cass shrugged, pulling her close once more, “All that matters.” She used her free hand to lift the empath’s chin, pulling her into a short kiss. “Waffles?”

“You know me all too well, love.”


	15. Chapter 15

Staring into the mirror with a mixture of horror and pride, Cassandra rubbed at the offending mark on her neck. A mark that  _definitely_  wasn’t a bruise, for once.

“You gave me a hickey!?” she cried, running a frustrated hand through her hair, “Raven, I’ve got pictures with Tim. In an  _hour_.”

“It’s not  _my_  fault that your neck was just so enticing last night, my love,” she said, wrapping slender arms around the bat’s waist and leaning to kiss over the offending mark once more. Cass felt a shiver run up her spine at the contact, the memory of how they’d spent the night before flooding uninvited into her mind.

“But I can heal it up in a flash, if it really bothers-”

“No, actually-” Cass’ own hand reached up to stop the empath’s glowing one. She glanced up at the mirror, seeing the confused look on her girlfriend’s face, and turned around to face her, signing quickly and succinctly, “It’s fine. Bruce has a make-up team to torture me with. It’s not every day two siblings inherit a  _corporate empire_ -”

“I thought Tim was going to be the  _public_  face, while you got to work from the  _shadows_ -”

“Tim used his own…  _methods_  to buy controlling shares. There’s a whole plan-”

Cassandra found her hands stilling themselves as Raven leaned down to steal another kiss from her lips, and the Bat’s fingers ghosted through the empath’s hair of their own accord. She hummed idly into the kiss, lips parting to taste green tea and honey.

She grinned against the kiss when Raven responded in kind, tongue flicking out to taste her lips. She broke it off as she felt the empath trail a hand down her arm and towards her side.

“Nope.  _That right there_ ,” she glared at the mystic, “That’s what’s going to get you in trouble with me again.”

“Promise me, you’ll wait for me after my shift, tonight?” she pleaded, “We need to start spending some time together  _before_  your missions. And not just  _after_.”

Cass leaned up for another quick kiss along her cheek. “ _No promises_ ,” she smiled mischievously before ducking under Raven’s arms and flitting out of the room.

She didn’t even have time to protest against the Bat.


	16. Chapter 16

She was by no means a doctor like her girlfriend was. She barely understood enough about first aid to pass as a nurse when doing undercover work, but it somehow always seemed to be  _just_  enough to get the job done. And right now, that was her saving grace.

It didn’t hurt that Raven’s healing abilities were likely helping things along, though.

The empath gripped her arm with surprising strength, and Cassandra almost jumped out of her skin. Even with how much time they’d spent together, anticipating a metahuman’s actions was never her strong suit. She furrowed her brow as Raven began directing her.

“Put more pressure on the arm. Stop the bleeding there… I’m… concentrating on healing my chest.”

“Reckless,” Cass chastised as she followed the instructions, grabbing new gauze and wrapping the wound quickly. She checked for the tightness and pressure, and let out a sigh of relief when she turned to see the wounds in Raven’s torso were closed. “Didn’t need to step _in front_ of them. There’s always another way.”

“Instinct,” Raven grunted as she leaned her head back to the ground. Cass let out a soft curse as she applied another layer of gauze over her arm, the wound was bleeding through the first. Which meant Raven would need an extra boost before her healing could help with it.

“ _Question_  here, status check on all Titans,” Montoya chimed in her ear, and Raven let out a soft groan. The Bat could feel her dread at what was to come, but knew she’d be forgiven if it meant saving the empath’s life.

“Raven’s down,” she said, cutting off Rose’s lead, “Took bullets to her chest and arms. Lost a lot of blood. Needs immediate evac’ and medical.” She remembered hearing  _something_  along those lines from all those movies she watched with Tim and Dick. The right terms to get everyone’s attention.

“Bat, any hostiles nearby? I’m two minutes away from your location,” Rose answered a hair above the roar of her vehicle’s engine. She felt a weak tug on her arm and answered her leader quickly with a sharp “ _negative”_  before turning back to the empath in her care.

“You need to kiss it better, love,” Raven smiled, whispering it as a soft request. She had a dreamy look in her half-lidded eyes.

Cass took a glance around her, and began to come to terms with just how much blood Raven had actually lost. Coupled with the energy she must have expended while healing such serious injuries, things were looking much worse for her than the Bat initially thought.

“That’s how magic works,” the empath mumbled, “True… love’s kiss.” Her eyes fluttered shut, but her breathing seemed to stay even.

Cass knew that Rose was only a minute off.

She knew that Raven would recover, as long as she wasn’t disturbed from this trance, this meditate state that her body forced her into.

She leaned down to kiss over the fresh gauze she applied over Raven’s arm, and hoped for the best anyway.


	17. Little Spoon

ravensWing: Hey @everyone. Alfred wanted me to remind you all: Don’t forget to RSVP for attending next week’s Gala. He wants at least 50% participation from you. He said, and I quote, “draw straws if you must”.  
stephUp: im only going if he can get 🅱️ to Pay 👏 Up 👏 Please 👏👏👏  
shivermeTimmers: cmon steph its for alfred!  
classyCain: ☝️  
redsHood: no. she’s right. 🅱️itchMans gotta Pay for participation  
classyCain: 😘😘😘😘😘😘😘😘  
fiteWing: …. u ok👌 there cassie?  
classyCain: 🤬😂  
classyCain: not 4 u  
dailyOracle: it’s okay Cass. We’ll work on keeping your chats straight  
fiteWing: 8 kissy emojis seem a lil excessive tho. Even for Cassie 🤨  
redsHood: straight? Cass? 😏 good luck with that freckles  
ravensWing: @classyCain 😘 *holds cass*  
classyCain: *is hold*  
dailyOracle: oh honey…….  
dailyOracle: no.  
stephUp: @shivermeTimmers  pls tell me u SEE THIS TOO  
dailyOracle: u were so close Cass 😭😭😭  
shivermeTimmers: oMG CASS MEME’D  
redsHood: hey 4 curious reel quick  
redsHood: Cass, r u the Big Spoon or the Lil Spoon 🥄  
classyCain: 🔪🔪🔪  
ravensWing: She’s the little spoon.

...

The Bat could readily admit that video games were fun. Frustrating and infuriating, but fun. Once Tim and Steph had given her the run down and helped her with some of the less accessible parts of gaming, she was well on her way to becoming Wayne Manor's resident champion.

Once she got a better handle of where the game mechanic's mimicry of movement failed her, she was sure to beat any gamer who dare cross her path. But for now, she settled into the familiar rhythm of the fight, building up combos and keeping a keen eye out to parry attacks. She almost failed to register Raven's announcement of her arrival, or acknowledge the empath until she had climbed into their bed right behind where the Bat sat near the edge, closest to the television.

"My shift at Elliot was a nightmare," she hummed, wrapping her arms languidly around the younger woman's body as she pulled Cass back into her lap.

After a delay, and brief whine of protest as the movement disrupted her streak, Cass finally asked, "What happened?" She only half-listened as the doctor buried her nose from crook of Cass' neck to her shoulders, leaving a trail of kisses behind.

"New residents, thinking they know so much more than the docs with decades of experience. Tensions between staff and patients," she mumbled, brushing her nose once more by Cass' ear and sending a shiver through the Bat's spine. "Me, counting down the minutes till I could join you here."

In normal circumstances, Cass would be relishing all of this attention. The way their bodies fit so perfectly together, Raven holding her close as she leaned back against the empath's chest, the perfect seat for movie nights and usually for gaming too.

If it wasn't for the fact that she kept losing that damn streak!

She cursed softly under breath as the monsters overwhelmed her character and the screen faded out.

"Shouldn't you be prepping for a real fight, and not virtual ones, my love?" Raven whispered as she nuzzled again into the Bat's neck. Cass began shutting the game down, finally letting herself lean back comfortably into the embrace.

"We've got... time to kill," she said thoughtfully before turning her face back to catch the corner of a kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prompt "who likes to hold and who likes to be held"


	18. "All These Things"

“I heard the last time you took a train to Smallville,” Raven started, “You were  _on_  it, instead of  _inside_  it.”

“It’s more fun… that way,” Cass explained, shrugging, as if that absolved her of the sheer insanity of the stunt she had pulled.

But then again, Raven had seen the Bat perform stranger stunts with a lot less prompting from her siblings. So maybe riding atop a train from Gotham to Smallville would seem like a walk in the park.

She mulled over that thought, watching Cass as she watched the landscape fly by them with each passing mile. She had her face cupped thoughtfully in her hand, the other one fidgeting idly with her shirt sleeve until Raven’s own reached over to still it, interlocking their fingers together. Her thumb shifted focus from rubbing at fabric instead to making soft circles in the empath’s skin now.

She could feel Cass’ nostalgia, as she took in some familiar sites and as her mind drifted between thoughts. Something that felt like another lifetime ago, a wistful hope lingering at the edges of her psyche.

Her thumb stopped making circles and began tapping gently and rhythmically instead. Another shift in thought.

“I never cared much for trains,” Raven admitted after those few minutes of companionable silence. She could feel Cass’ nostalgia taking a morose turn, and wanted to do her best to curve it. Hopefully, without the Bat noticing.

But she was a detective. So there was really no way to know how good a job she’d do.

“After what happened in the Alps, with the kids… Sometimes it’s… hard. To relax completely on them, I mean.” Now it was Raven’s turn to fiddle absentmindedly with her own clothing.

“I know… exactly what you mean,” Cass nodded. She opened her mouth to speak again, before shutting it. Always so careful, purposeful with her words. Never quite fitting naturally for one so used to letting  _action_  speak for her.

“The past… Our past is what shapes us, and…  _starts_  to form us. But we don’t let it…  _define_  us.” She lifted up their joined hands, placing her other one around Raven’s to keep it in a vice. “We gain strength from those shadows… and learn from them. And… we push ahead.”

The Titan sat there, in the moment, as Cass’ warm smile spread and she brought their hands close to her lips for a quick kiss along the empath’s knuckles. And just as quickly, she turned again to rest her chin in that other hand and to watch the countryside roll by them again, leaving Raven to revel in the new wave of optimism she could feel rolling off of the bat.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> answered prompt taken from my tumblr (@dyketectivecomics) feel free to drop me a line there if you like what you're reading here (but comments & kudos are also Much Appreciated)

**Author's Note:**

> Posting these rapid-fire from tumblr. hope y'all like this ao3!


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